"Paul will put 11,000 bureaucrats to work getting Republicans re-elected."

"Paul will put 11,000 bureaucrats to work getting Republicans re-elected."

Obviously, any executive wants to have a team in place around them, as it makes it easier to further their agenda. For a governor, this means not only immediate staff, but a supportive Legislature. To that end, and within the limits of the law, a governor will help to elect like-minded people running for the House or Senate.

More than two weeks before the inauguration, on 18 December 2010, Demeritt sent the email below to trusted members of the LePage inner circle. With the subject "incumbent protection," it outlines what then Gov.-Elect LePage's plan is, including:

Obviously a figurative statement that Gerald over at Dirigo Blue and the Maine Professional Left will take out of
context and use to send a slew of press releases.

Question: If Maine state government is found to have been made more efficient, effective and responsive to the
needs of Maine taxpayers over the course of the next 20 months, would that not represent bureaucrats helping
elect Republicans? Won't Maine voters appreciate the work that has been done and want to maintain the leadership
that did the hard work to get Maine government to that place?

Obviously a figurative statement that Gerald over at Dirigo Blue and the Maine Professional Left will take out of context

Yup.

If Maine state government is found to have been made more efficient, effective and responsive to the
needs of Maine taxpayers over the course of the next 20 months, would that not represent bureaucrats helping
elect Republicans.

If Maine state government is found to have been made more efficient, effective and responsive to the
needs of Maine taxpayers over the course of the next 20 months, would that not represent bureaucrats helping
elect Republicans?

Could be, I suppose. But, in contrast, Demerritt seems to think that the best route to re-election depends on getting photographed handing out over-sized plywood checks drawn on federal stimulus funds.

I think 9000 bureaucrats truly doing the people's business (as opposed to increasing their empires, or finding out new ways to coddle illegal aliens, or doing "outreach" to maximize entitlement expenditures) could be a force to be reconned with.

Paraphrasing: "See old friend, I brought more public servants than you did."

DB is utterly ridiculous, as even a casual reading of the email is clear: The new GOP gang in town will have those 11,000 bureaucrats helping Mainers like never before. Mainers will then say, "wow, we never knew". And will re-elect Republicans.

"Frightfully familiar" is exactly what it is, although the idea that thousands of bureaucrats are going to be put to work to elect Republicans is surely delusional. Naturally, policy successes can and should be turned to political advantage but that is not the same thing. Most civil servants will continue doing what they have been doing and most will remain loyal to the Democratic Party because it is the party of government.

Otherwise there is nothing in this memo that is surprising or out of the ordinary in this memo except that it was written at all.

Mike Michaud, who never served in uniform, was seated on the Veterans Affairs Committee because Maine's 2nd District has the densest population of vets of any district in the country. As such it was destined to get its share of the VA committee's budget allocations. But he will pretend that every cent spent is a result of his "working hard" and "fighting" for the vets. This doesn't qualify as hypocrisy. it is so obvious that it amounts to self-parody. Mike simply follows the established SOP for politicians.

Hypocrisy rears its ugly head when people pretend to by indignant about these practices. The only people entitled to be indignant are the GOP candidates who are now unable to play the games that Dan D. was indiscreet enough to put in writing.

Looks like the author, now spokes model for Governor LePage suffered from a bit of his boss' "foot in mouth" disease. It really looks bad but this is a minor slip and will mostly be forgotten. The problem is when these type of missteps start to accumulate and weigh on the public's mind. Hubris is a mortal sin.

After watching Mr. Demeritt in action over the past few weeks, I'm beginning to wonder if the guy is ready for prime time. I'm totally underwhelmed at this point. Kind of reminds me of Willis Lyford, Jock's first press secretary who was totally out of his element and eventually took a job out of state.

The idiocy is that this was put in writing, not the content. That's totally inept and potentially politically suicidal. If it must be communicated, it should have been funnelled through third parties to establish plausible deniability. Either uttered by someone at the state party not affiliated with government or, even better, by a consultant or pundit with six degrees of separation who can float the idea and implant it among those who should be made aware without any fingers pointing back to anyone official.

Never put in writing what you can communicate with a whisper, never whisper what you communicate with a wink and a nod.

I'm seeing a dangerous arrogance coming out of the new GOP regime which isn't going to serve them well in 2012 or 2014.

They forget the primary rule of political communication: Perceptions count for more than facts in how the public responds to political people and their actions.

Republican activists will have to be more crtitical of these actions early and avoid knee-jerk apologetics or they'll be attending a lot of condolence parties in the next election cycle.

Just another in the long line to come, of LePage opponents in full "slash and burn" mode.

Desperation is so unbecoming.

***********

Jan 28, 9:28 AM EST

Maine Dems upset by LePage memo said to politicize

AUGUSTA, Maine (AP) -- Maine Democrats and the head of the state employees' union are upset by what they see as a plan by the administration of GOP Gov. Paul LePage to use state employees to help get Republicans re-elected.

An internal memo written last month by LePage spokesman Dan Demeritt concluded with the phrase the LePage administration "will put 11,000 bureaucrats to work getting Republicans re-elected."

Naran: your analogy of "slash and burn" is apt. But that's my point as a pragmatic political practitioner: think before you speak or write and leave some things unwritten and unsaid.

If you know your foe is sure to attack, fortify yourself with advance preparedness and don't erect a sitting target unless it is an intentional decoy to lure the foe into ambush. What I'm seeing from Augusta is ungirded sentries running into open fields exposing themselves as easy targets to Democrat attack. That is unnecessary and foolish.

However, I still say the sanctimonious bleating from the Democrats on this issue is hilariously astounding. Do they honestly expect us to believe that nobody under Baldacci was doing the same (or worse), in terms of mobilizing every state employee/union resource possible, in order to preserve the Baldacci/Democrat "dominion"?

If so, they have got to be kidding.

*********
Grant fired back Thursday, saying state employees are not political pawns and that having state employees engage in partisan political activity is a clear violation of state law.

How many of the resident AMG union members could testify to the Baldacci administration doing exactly what Grant outlines, above?

Portion of reader comment from the site linked above:

Conservativereason wrote:
... busing in hundreds of MSEA/SEIU employees on holidays, weekends, shutdown days is perfectly acceptable? Wow. ...
...snip
Tell me the Democrats didn't coordinate to get some of their freshman legislators a little recognition. How else would Ms. Emily (I have a college degree in music) Cain end up with a leadership position on the appropriations committee? She carried Libby Mitchell's water for many years, that's how.

This is the type of thing that wipes away the very small amount of political capital the GOP was given with the victory in the last election cycle. This is almost as bad as the choice to head the Department of Economic Development with much more qualified applicants to pick from.

Vic,
Your analysis is spot on. People can continue to whine about how unfair the press and Dems are being to Paul but the blunders are glaring and very unnecessary. The point of Demeritt's email was looking ahead to the serious task of protecting the majorities in 2012, which will be a difficult and crucial. However, his sloppy phrase at the end of the email is now doing the opposite.

The Lepage administration and officials need to understand this is not about them. They are flushing the hard-work and long years of waiting by conservatives down the drain. By continuously tarnishing their own reputation they are making it unlikely that they will be able to develop broad popular support necessary for lasting legislative success.

You mean, as opposed to the GIGANTIC amount of political capital that MY party has sent down the toilet during the 40 years that the Maine house has taken to turn Maine into an poor agrarian, as opposed to a prosperous industrial economy? If Paul wanted to avoid a second term, he'd need only do that which MY party has shown him.

I think if Paul and Co. can show net $$ gains in real terms, they'll get anoter "at bat". If all that they can show is that the dems attempted sabotage, things are more iffy. If they fritter away valuable time and money on Gay Marriage, abortion and rolling back medical marijuana, and do NOT accompany it with spectacular success, they'll lose.

In all fairness, let's remember that this memo was written before the inauguration.

With that said, you just plain don't put something like that in an email - especially when you know that the Dems aren't going to go softly into that good night. LePage and Demeritt had better become more circumspect and stop handing the Dems ammunition. Right now, they look like a bunch of rookies. No, strike that - they look like LITTLE LEAGUE rookies and it matters not a whit how noble the agenda.

Don't blame biased media, either. Sure it's biased - but they're reporting this stuff because people are INTERESTED in it. To a media outlet, these guys are the gift that keeps on giving.

Note to the Admin: for the sake of the State of Maine, PLEASE be a little more circumspect in what your write and say.

Kind of amazing, actually. The best response is "they do it, too!" followed by "they've got to be more circumspect." Translation: Sneaky.

The perceived strikes against this administration are stacking up and it's been less than a month. Just imagine what they will have done to themselves by 2014. They better start getting some hits and a few home runs. So far, scaring immigrants isn't doing it for many.

I've not been following Mr. Demeritt, heck had no idea who he was until last week when a buddy of mine called last to ask if I heard him on the WGAN moring. Did anyone hear this interview/ exchange with Ken? I haven't